The Second Musketeer Mission Trilogy: Part Three
by Lyssita Lennon
Summary: The final piece of the trilogy. What will Corinne say to Louis' proposal? Will her strange behavior cause suspicions? And exactly what does Renee discover behind a secret door in the castle wall?
1. A Difficult Decision

_(A/N: So this is the end. The final piece in the trilogy. However I do have plans for a sequel, so it does have an open ending. Also, as oppose to the usual five chapters, this one has seven. I hope you all like it!)_

Chapter 1. A Difficult Decision

_Louis let go of the balloon's steering system, his hand reaching into his pocket. "Corinne," he said, "I love you and I want to be with you forever," a small, velvet box in his hand, "Corinne Viviania D'Artagnan, will you marry me?"_

_"Louis, I thought the whole point of this was to keep our relationship a secret," Corinne said uneasily, "So, no _one would assume the wrong thing."

"Then this can be a secret too! Corinne, I love you, please just think about it," Louis pleaded.

Corinne's eyes widened, "You would give me time to think about this?"

Louis nodded, "All the time you'd need."

"Why?" Corinne asked, "Why are you giving me so much time?"

His hand stroked her cheek, arm wrapped around her waist, "Because I love you," he whispered gently.

"But you deserve an answer," Corinne whispered.

"And I can wait," Louis said, "I know this is a difficult decision for, and I'll understand if you say no, but please, just think about it."

Corinne nodded, "I will," she promised.

The balloon landed with a slight bump. And after saying their goodbyes, Corinne headed back, to make the most difficult decision of her life.


	2. A Sweet Dream and A Horrifying Nightmare

_(A/N: Something I forgot to mention! I need two reviews for each chapter, then I'll post the next one.)_

Chapter 2. A Sweet Dream and A Horrifying Nightmare

"_Momma! Momma!"_

"_What is it Alexandria?" Corinne asked._

"_I finded a pretty flower!" she squealed, producing a pink and purple tulip bud._

_Corinne laughed, "That is a pretty one."_

"_It for you, Momma," Alexandria giggled._

"_Thank you Alexandria," Corinne said._

"_I go find 'nother one!" Alexandria exclaimed and dashed back into the meadow._

"_Another one?" Louis asked._

"_A tulip bud this time." Corinne clarified._

_Louis smiled, "At this rate, she'll have picked the whole meadow by sundown._

_Corinne rested her head on his shoulder, "And just think," she began, "in a few months, we'll have to start this all over again."_

_Her hand stroked her stomach; the bump more predominant than it had been a month ago._

_Louis kissed her gently, "But it will all be worth it."_

"_It will," Corinne agreed._

"_Momma!" Alexandria screamed._

A blurring sense and the scene changed drastically.

_The room is dimly lit, seeing is nearly impossible. An ambush! Men surrounding them on all sides. A battle cry sounds in the air._

_Lights flash, swords bash. _

_A scream, pain filled and blood curdling. Body and ground collide._

_Renee makes no attempt to get up._

_Fighting styles clash, swords smash._

_High and shrill, rings out a shriek. Steps sway, grip loosens, _

_Aramina's eyes close._

_Girls' dash, swords crash._

_A choking gasp, cut off by a sudden gurgle. Breathing stops, body slumps,_

_Viveca's chest no longer rises or falls._

_She's the only one left. _

_Surrounded by men, each with a proud smirk and a deadly glare._

_Sword in hand, a man lunges forward…_

Corinne's scream pounded against her eardrums.

Someone shakes her shoulder, "Corinne, wake up!" a voice pleads.

Her eyes flash open, her body covered in sweat, her breathing ragged.

"Corinne, what's wrong?" Aramina asks, "What happened?"

"Nightmare," she rasped.

"Are you ok?" Viveca speculated.

Corinne waited until her breathing and heartbeat returned to normal.

"I'm fine," she whispered.

"Do you wanna tell us about it?" Renee inquired.

Corinne shook her head, "No."

She didn't want to re-live the nightmare, didn't want to see the disturbing images again…

And after an hour, Corinne fell back asleep. Her dream/nightmare giving her just what she needed: the answer to Louis' question.


	3. Decisions,Some Are Good and Some Are Bad

_(A/N: Why won't you review? Don't you wanna know what happens? I literally had to beg for the last two! Review or I won't update and you'll never know what happens!)_

Chapter 3. Decisions, Some Are Good and Some Are Bad

The sky was dark. Corinne quietly slipped out of bed. She'd caught Louis in the hall earlier, asked him to meet her while everyone else slept. Halfway to the door and she bumped the desk, knocking a candleholder to the floor. None of the girls' stirred. Corinne breathed out a sigh of relief and snuck out the door.

…

Renee heard a crash and knew something was wrong. A candleholder on the floor and Corinne sneaking out the door! Renee launched herself from her bed, wherever Corinne was going, she was going too. Corinne had been acting quote strange lately. Bumping into things, a far away look in her eyes, and then the other night she woke up screaming…

She followed her to a dead-ended castle wall. Corinne's hand pressed to the wall and a passage way opened.

"_That's strange,"_ Renee thought, _"This passage way isn't on my map!"_ She followed her inside.

"Corinne," an extraordinarily familiar masculine voice greeted. A stepped from the shadows.

Renee's eyes widened, _"Is that…"_

"Louis," Corinne addressed.

"_That confirms that theory," _Renee concluded.

They spoke lower, Renee listened harder.

"So, Corinne," Louis began, "Can you tell me why I'm here?"

"I have the answer to your question," Corinne claimed.

"_What question?" _Renee wondered.

"Well?" Louis asked, a hint of excitement in his voice.

"Yes," Corinne breathed.

"Yes?" Louis repeated in disbelief.

Corinne laughed, "Yes, I'll marry you."

And he kissed her.

"What!" Renee gasped, the sound quiet enough it didn't reach Corinne or Louis.

Renee couldn't believe it. Corinne was about to throw everything they'd worked for, because she'd had some stupid fling.

"_But when would they have had the time to…" _Then it struck her, _"They were __**always**__ together during her recovery last year. She's __**always**__ late meeting with us. She __**never**__ told us what she was doing on her day off."_

Renee ran from the corridor, burst from the door of the household they all shared.

"Viveca, Aramina! Wake up!" she shrieked.


	4. Secrets Don't Stay Secret For Long

_(A/N: Many many thanks to: Puppysaur, LolInna, detektivconan4life, BeckyBoo12221. Your reviews were very encouraging and I didn't have to beg for them! This is for all you guys! Thanks again!)_

Chapter 4. Secrets Don't Stay Secret For Long

_Renee ran from the corridor, burst from the door of the household they all shared._

"_Viveca, Aramina! Wake up!" she shrieked._

"Renee," Aramina groaned, "It's not even morning!"

"I don't care!" Renee shouted.

"It had better be important," Viveca mumbled sleepily, her face half buried in a pillow.

Renee nodded, "It's about Corinne."

Viveca and Aramina rose from their beds and exchanged worried glances. Either Corinne was definitely up to something, or something was seriously wrong with her.

"Corinne's marrying Louis," Renee informed them.

"What?" Viveca gasped, "I knew she'd been acting strange lately!"

Aramina's eyes lit up, "I think it's romantic and sweet and-"

"Aramina, you don't get it!" Renee snapped, "Corinne's in serious trouble!"

"If anyone else knew…" Viveca began.

"If anyone else knew, Corinne would be in some serious trouble, and so would we," Renee realized.

As Aramina struggled for rebuttal, the door opened.

"Viveca! Aramina! Renee!" Corinne gasped, "What are you all doing up so early?"


	5. Confrontations Can Make or Break You

_(A/N: So, again, I thank my reviewers(CleoCorinne and detektivconan4life specifically. They added the two reviews needed to make this chapter possible!) Remember, this is NOT the last chapter(there's two more!) Also, be sure to check out my profile page, as I'll be adding story stats and info about upcoming fics. Yay! But enough of my rambling, on to the story!)  
_

Chapter 5. Confrontations Can Make or Break You

…_the door opened._

"_Viveca! Aramina! Renee!" Corinne gasped, "What are you all doing up so early?"_

"We could ask you the same question!" Viveca retorted.

Uncertainty flickered across Corinne's face, "I couldn't sleep, so I-"

"Save it Corinne," Renee snapped, "You've been lying to us."

"We _know_ about you and Louis, we _know_ what the two of you are planning," Viveca began.

Renee continued Viveca's thought, "Are you really throwing away everything we worked for, because of something as stupid as-"

Corinne's eyes narrowed, "Something as stupid as what Renee?" she interrupted, "You don't even know the half of it!"

"Because you never told us!" Viveca said incredulously.

"No, I didn't tell you," Corinne screamed, "And I have my reasons!"

"Really? I'd love to hear them!" Renee shouted.

"Fine!" Corinne snapped, "Here's your reasons! It was too dangerous! You always tease me about how he likes me! I didn't trust you-"

"Wait, you didn't trust me?" Renee boomed.

"I didn't trust any of you! I didn't even trust myself!" Corinne shrieked, "Aramina can't keep a secret for more than two hours, Viveca would be dropping hints about it! And you, you didn't trust me from the beginning remember? I'm just a 'country girl who won't last a week in the city'."

"I said that two years ago" Renee clarified, "When I didn't know you."

"But it's still true isn't it? You don't trust me! I can see it in your eyes!" Corinne stated.

"Well, you obviously don't trust me! I had to find about you and Louis the hard way!" Renee bellowed.

"The hard way?" Corinne snarled, "You mean, you followed me?"

Renee nodded, "Yeah, I followed you, because I knew something was up! And I was right! You and Louis-"

"Why can't you just leave us alone?" Corinne hollered.

"Because it's our job to protect him!" Renee argued.

"So, you feel the need to protect him from me?" Corinne asked angrily.

"From anything deemed threatening," Renee muttered.

"I'm threatening?" Corinne laughed humorlessly, "Guess what Renee, here's another reason I didn't tell you," her voice began to shake, "When I'm with Louis, I'm happier than I've ever been, and you don't even care. You don't care about me or my happiness, you only care about yourself!"

That said, and Corinne slammed the door behind her. She ran to the corridor as fast as her legs would carry her. Ran to Louis, nearly knocking him over, throwing her arms around him, and then she cried.


	6. Even Musketeers Need Shoulders to Cry On

_(Wow! You guys must really like this story! I'm glad I typed the whole thing before posting it! But anyways, more thanks to my reviewers: detektivconan4life, __Puppysaur, and BeckyBoo12221 specifically. I'm glad you take the time to review, thank you. And now I must warn you. I have quite an odd imagination. The last two chapters were derived from a strange idea that lives on in my diseased imagination. But as strange as they are, they opened the doors for a sequel! Yay! But enough of this, on with the story!)_  


Chapter 6. Even Musketeers Need A Shoulder to Cry On

…_Corinne slammed the door behind her. She ran to the corridor as fast as her legs would carry her. Ran to Louis, knocking him over, throwing her arms around him, and then she cried._

"Corinne!" Louis gasped, "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Renee followed me, she told Viveca and Aramina," Corinne sobbed, "They know everything!"

"Everything? Louis asked gravely.

"Well, maybe not everything," Corinne mumbled, "but they know a lot."

Louis swallowed nervously, "Do you think they'll tell Monsieur Treville?"

Corinne shook her head, "I don't know. But the way we were screaming at each other, I'd be surprised if no one heard us."

Louis squeezed her shoulders, "Oh, Corinne I'm so sorry," he whispered.

"They're suppose to be my friends," Corinne whimpered, fresh tears flowing down the paths of the old ones.

"What exactly happened?" Louis inquired.

"When I got up to meet you, I bumped the desk and knocked a candleholder over, that must have woke Renee up, Corinne began, "She followed me here, and after hearing our conversation, I guess she told Viveca and Aramina. Then her and Viveca were screaming at me."

"But not Aramina," Louis guessed.

Corinne shook her head, "No, not Aramina," and then she laughed a little, "Knowing Aramina, she's probably on my side."

"What makes you think that?" Louis wondered.

"Aramina's a romantic and it's gotten worse since she's been with Anthony," Corinne explained, "But even if she's on my side, I'm not going back there. I'm in no hurry to have Renee and Viveca screaming at me again.

"Does this mean, that you want to..." Louis let his voice trail off. What if all this drama was causing her to rethink her answer to the marriage.

"Do I want to, what?" Corinne asked.

"The marriage," Louis said quickly, "Are we calling it off?"

Corinne laughed defiantly, "Calling it off? Ha! I'm not about to let Viveca and Renee tell me what to do!"

Louis' lips twist, "So, you're marrying me in a feat of defiance, to get back at Renee and Viveca for screaming at you?"

"No," Corinne said, her hands on either side of his face, and unrecognizable emotion in her eyes, "I'm marrying you because I love you." Her lips crush to his, moving in a rhythm soft and slow.

Her arms wrap around his neck, his around her waist. He caught her bottom lip between his teeth, his tongue glided across her bottom lip, seeking the entrance that she graciously granted. A wet and warm collision and he kiss deepened.

Louis broke away, "I...believe...you," he said breathless.

"Good," Corinne gasped, breathless as well, before kissing him once more.


	7. A Little White Lie to Help A Friend

_(A/N: Thank you all so much for your love and reviews! Thanks are in order for: CleoCorinne(Love you Ceci!) and detektivconan4life! You have stuck with the story! YAY! So, here's the last chapter. I'm soo sad to see this end! But that's why I listened to my (odd/diseased) imagination and ended it this way to bring a sequel! YAY! Oh! And detektivconan4life, your question about the sequel. I wish I could tell you, but it would give the whole plot away! However, I can tell you that nit has something to do with something that's in chapter 2! YAY! And if you have any ideas please PM me! I love new ideas! And enough of this, on to the story! YAY!)  
_

Chapter 7. A Little White Lie to Help A Friend

"Hey Aramina, have you seen Corinne anywhere?" Viveca asked, she felt absolutely terrible about what happened the other day.

Aramina shook her head, "Not since the other day, when you and Renee were yelling at her."

Viveca's face fell, "I feel so awful about that."

"Me too," Renee added, "I feel like this whole mess was my fault."

"Serves you right!" Aramina snapped, "Corinne's been nothing but nice to all of us. She was supportive of our relationships, and just because she didn't tell us about hers doesn't mean she deserved to be screamed at! You two should be ashamed of they way you acted! It was childish and stupid and-"

"We get it Aramina," Renee interrupted.

"No, I don't think you do Renee! You wouldn't listen to her! You wouldn't let her explain! All you did was yell and scream and..." Aramina's voice broke, tears flowed freely down her cheeks, "And I just want Corinne back!"

"We all want her back Aramina," Viveca said on the verge of tears as well.

"Aramina's right, this whole mess is my fault," Renee admitted, "I shouldn't have yelled, I should have let her explain. If I'd known things were going to turn out like this, I wouldn't have followed her in the first place." Tears glistened in her eyes.

A knock came from the door.

"Heads up girls," it was Monsieur Treville, "I need you all to be strong."

"Monsieur Treville, I don't mean to be rude, but our dear friend is missing. We have no idea where she is. Don't we deserve some time to ourselves to make sense of things?" Viveca asked.

Aramina's sobs grew louder.

"That's what I wished to speak with you girls about," Monsieur Treville said, "As you may already know, His Highness, King Louis is missing too. I suspect he and Corinne were together. Do you have any theories about what might have happened to them?"

"Maybe they were kidnapped," Aramina muttered, more to herself than anyone else.

"You just might be onto something Aramina," Monsieur Treville declared.

Renee almost laughed, "Monsieur Treville, Corinne's highly skilled with a sword. I'm sure she could have easily taken down any attacker."

"But there is a special plant essence that numbs the body and produces sleepy effects," Aramina mentioned quickly, "The attacker could have used that and Corinne wouldn't have been able to fight back."

"Very true, Aramina," Monsieur Treville affirmed, "I'll get a search party organized." That said and he was out the door.

"Aramina! Why did you say that?" Viveca scolded, "What if he actually finds them? What if he learns the truth of why they're missing?"

"They won't find either of them," Aramina mumbled, "No matter how hard they look. Corinne's unstoppable."


End file.
